Horizon
by ThisUserNameIsNowAvailable
Summary: Gale is left to watch as his true love is sent to die. When he sees what actually happens, he is sent into a world of confusion. He doesn't believe it to be true, but watching, Gale can't help but notice how convincing it seems to be. Slash! The story goes along the same story line as the book, just with less detail and from a new perspective.
1. Chapter 1

**You would not believe how long I've been working on this. This is my pride and joy and my first fanfiction. Flames are lame!**

**Side note: This is a slash story. Slash is beautimous. Don't hate on beautimous things**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hunger Games! If I were Collins, I'd probably end up killing Katniss. Seriously. She gets annoying**

**ANYWAY, Enjoy!**

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_Gale P.O.V._

Isn't it fun to wake up thinking that, hey, today you might get the awesome opportunity to die?

If you said yes, you're a sick person, and I'd gladly let you take my place. That's exactly how I feel today. That offer is still available.

I'm standing in the square, under the perfect blue sky that's trying to hide all the heartbreak destined to happen today.

Great. Best day of my life.

I watch as more people fill the square, the families surrounding the roped off enclosures that all of us kids are kept in as we wait to see who's going to be destined to die this year.

I see the people who don't have children or don't give a shit take bets on who is being sent off.

It makes me wonder how many of them are betting on me. If I were them, I'd bet on me too. I don't know how I've made it this long.

My name's in that pretty glass bowl of death forty-two times.

Forty-freaking-two.

If that doesn't make my life a miracle, I don't know what does.

It makes Catnip's life a miracle too. Me and her are in the same boat.

Both of our dads died in a coal accident. Both of us have to support our families now. Both of us still have nightmares about it

Both of us don't talk about it.

Effie gets up out of her chair and walks to the podium. It's a wonder she doesn't fall off the stage walking in a skirt that tight with skyscraper heels to top it all off.

That might actually succeed in brightening my day.

"Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!" Effie's voice seems even shriller than usual, if that's even possible.

I hardly listen as she gives her little speech about how she loves it here and all of the other things that are complete bullshit.

I search the crowd of teenage girls until my eyes land on Catnip.

She looks on edge. I imagined she would be, with her sister being here for her first reaping.

When we meet eyes I try to smile. I really don't like seeing her upset. She's my best friend.

"Ladies first!" Effie screeches. And now I have to worry about whether or not Catnip will be hunting with me tomorrow.

Effie's hand sinks into the bowl of slips.

If only they were carnivorous.

Everyone holds their breath. Her hand escapes the slips excruciatingly slow. Even the mockingjays are silent as her hand finally rises above the top of the bowl. She slowly unfolds it and I feel as if I could burst.

Can she be a little less over the top? Is it really that hard to pull out a slip of paper?Effie holds the slip out in front of her like it's something precious.

I want to punch her.

It will fix whatever it is she's done to her face.

"Primrose Everdeen." No.

Not Catnip.

Please no.

Wait.

Effie didn't say Katniss. She said Primrose. Prim. It almost made me feel happy.

At least, until I realized that Catnip's sister was going to die.

And that Catnip isn't about to let that happen.

"Prim!" Her voice comes out mangled. This is going to get bad. "Prim!"

Catnip runs up to the stage, and seizes Prim's arm just as her foot lands on the first step. Prim tries to shake her off."I volunteer!" No. She was going. I should have known.

No one could get that lucky.

"I volunteer as tribute!" I realized that if it had been Rory or Vick being called up, I'd be doing the same thing.

I realized I'd die for them, just as Katniss is going to die for Prim.

But maybe she won't die. Maybe Catnip can win this.

If anyone from this sorry district could do it, she could. She's the toughest girl I've ever met.

I walk towards the stage as Prim starts screaming bloody murder. I don't think Katniss can take it.

"Let go!" Her voice was near cracking.

I lift Prim off the ground. She's still screaming, and now she's doing a pretty good job of nearly pummeling me to death.

"Up you go, Catnip." I'm surprised by my voice. It almost cracked.

I carry Prim over to her mother. She hold prim close, stroking her hair. I don't know if she's going to make it. She doesn't look good, with her face now so pale.

I turn around just to see something amazing.

Everyone in the Square brings their three idle fingers to their lips and turns them outwards towards Catnip.

This is a sign of respect. It says thank you and goodbye. They do it at funerals.

I guess that would be pretty appropriate.

I can't think anymore after that. I completely shut down. Or try to.

Just before I do, I hear a shrill voice.

It says,"Peeta Mellark."

And I thought my day couldn't get any worse.

Why Peeta?

I never thought he would get called.

Nothing makes any sense.

How am I supposed to live without my best friend and the boy that I'd been in love with for as long as I can remember?

I can't.

And I definitely can't watch Peeta die.

I'd die too.

I began to take a step forward. I am willing to die for him. So why not?

But it's too late. It was over with.

Peeta is going into the Hunger Games.

This knocked some sense into me.

I have to support a family. Two, now with Catnip being gone and all.

The most I can do now is say goodbye.

I watch as they are escorted into the Justice Building. No one seems to care about Peeta dying. They're all still caught up in Catnip's sacrifice for Prim. It's pretty awesome she did that, but Peeta.

How could no one care?

Besides me. I care.

And now it's time for me to go show him that.

I follow the small crowd heading towards the Justice Building behind the two tributes. They split into two lines, and I don't know who to go say goodbye to first.

I decide I want to be the last person Peeta sees and since Catnip's line is significantly longer, I stand at the end of it.

What was I supposed to tell her? Great being friends with you, sorry you're going to die?

She'll have to die if Peeta was coming back.

Unless she does something crazy, which i won't put past her.

Suddenly, Madge comes up behind me, looking all nervous, looking over her shoulder. I wonder if her dad let her come say goodbye, or if she snuck out. When she sees me staring at her, Madge blushes and looks down at her feet.

"You wanna go ahead of me?" I ask, because obviously she's in a rush. She looks up at me surprised, and then nods. She takes her place in front of me, and leaves me to my terrifying thoughts.

What if neither of them come back? No one from District Twelve hardly ever does. I have to stop thinking like that, especially since it's my turn to go say goodbye.

Oh joy.

When I walk through the doors, the first thing i do is absorb Catnip into a hug. She looks so damn sad, and I hate seeing her sad. She's practically my sister.

Too bad she's going to die.

I could at least pretend like that might not happen. Cheer her up some before her imminent doom.

"Listen," I tell her, not knowing what I'm going to say until it comes out. "Getting A knife should be pretty easy, but you've got to get your hands on a bow. That's your best chance." Go me! I'm giving good advice. Hopefully she'll take it.

We kept discussing this, and I could tell she had no faith in herself. I really wish she did. If anyone could do this, Katniss can.

And maybe she'll help Peeta.

"You know how to kill." Kill anyone who comes near Peeta, will you? I'll be your best friend...

"Not people." Oh great. Just what I need. More self consciousness.

"How different can it be, really?" I tell her grimly, realizing she's just as likely to kill Peeta as she is anyone else in the arena. Maybe my advice should've been saved for him.

I needed to tell her one more thing.

What was it again? Oh yeah.

She needs to know that I'm know what? She doesn't need to know.

She won't live to see me again.

Now the Peacekeepers walk in, and it hits me. Katniss, my best friend, is being sent to death. I'm never going to see her again.

Oh shit.

"Don't let them starve!" She screams, tears in her eyes. Please. Her family won't starve unless I die.

"I won't! You know I won't! Katniss, remember I-" I get dragged out of there, unable to finish my sentence. What was I going to say? The door slammed in my face, and my mind went blank.

Oh well. One more thing to do. I look down the hall at the place where Peeta is being held. I stop thinking and let my instincts carry me through those next doors and into that room.

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**It's raining outside. The lightning's kind of scary.****I'm sorry if you hate cliffies!**

**I love them, they let your imagination roam.**

**Review? Maybe I'll stop being so hard on Catnip if you do...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay. Here's the second chapter. Sorry it took so long! I kept on putting it off, and then I was trying to sleep and suddenly, I had to finish writing this.**

**I FORGOT TO SAY THIS SO I'M EDITING THIS A.N. : A very special thanks to Lil'Red-killed-wolf and her nutty bars! I'd probably still be drowning in self pity for not writing if you didn't help me with one of the more awesome parts of this chapter!**

**So anyway, I don't own the lovely book that this fic is based off of. It's all Suzanne Collin's. I would hate to be the writer of Mocking Jay.**

**Enjoy! **

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_Peeta P.O.V._

What are you supposed to do when you know you're going to die? You probably aren't supposed to cry, but that's all I can seem to do.

I am going to die. Just for the fun of it, my imminent death will most likely be painful. To top it all off, even my mother doesn't love me and has more faith in my opponent.

Katniss is nice and all, volunteering for her sweet little sister, but I'd thought for a second that my mom might actually care about me. Oh well.

I sat there, head down, hands on my knees. The only thing I manage to do is get my sobbing to be silent.

When I hear the door open, I don't even look up. Who ever it is that has been sent to drag me on the train will have to work to get me off this couch. I'm not going anywhere.

Yet, instead of pulling at my arm, the person sits down next to me. Okay. That's weird.

Does someone else actually want to say goodbye to me? I look up, and my surprise continues to get stronger.

"G-Gale? What are you doing here?" It shames me that my voice shakes and falters. Not in front of him. This might be the last time I get to see him. I should make it count, even if not in the way I want to.

"I'm saying goodbye. Isn't that what's supposed to be happening in here?" His voice is as strong as ever, but it's different. Almost softer, in a way. My heart falters just as much as my voice had.

"Why would you need to say goodbye to me?" I look him in the eye, trying to find the answer, but Gale turns his face away from mine.

He doesn't answer me. This I am used to. Being ignored. Yet, right in this moment, it's killing me.

"It doesn't matter. None of it matters. No matter what, the ending will be the same. Me, dead." I let out a sigh and through my head back, trying to keep more tears from falling. A few escape.

"No." Gale said it so suddenly, I jump.

"No? No what? No to me dying? Why would you even care?" Oh please let him care. But why would he? There was no way he could think about me the way I think about him. No one could think of me that way.

"I just do, Peeta." There it is again. That softness. It gets stronger when he says my name.

Now it seems to be Gale's turn to stare me down. I let him. There is some sort of flicker, a lick of fire in his eyes. I feel his fingers graze mine.

Then I'm holding Gale Hawthorne's hand. I blink once, twice. His eyes are still locked onto mine. Our fingers are laced together, and I grip his a bit tighter, afraid he may let go any moment.

I slide over some, and our knees are touching. A jolt runs up my back. Gale's eyes widen.

"I just care." He whispers lips barely moving. I'm not sure if I imagined it, but then he leans forward. Now I know I didn't imagine it. My imagination couldn't make something so amazing up.

"I'm glad." And I am. Except this feeling is multiplied by ten thousand. Gale smiles at me, and it's filled with that softness.

It makes my heart stop. Only for a second, until I realize that he's smiling at me. That gets it going again.

Why is he smiling at me? And why does it make me feel like this? Wait. I don't care. All that matters right now is the way he's slowly leaning towards me.

He doesn't stop. He leans and leans until that last space between our lips is he's kissing me. Every feeling I've felt since Gale walked into this room is intensified. It absorbs me, and I can't think. All I can do is deepen the kiss.

Who needs air, anyway? Who would need it when someone that you've been longing for actually seems to long for you too? Not me. Air is overrated.

When Gale pulled away, a new look had overcome his face. Determination. I kind of miss the softness.

"You've got to get out of there alive." His voice is filled with that same determination. Hearing Gale tell me this, I realize that I have to. I have to get back. I can't leave Gale like this.

"Okay. Okay, I'll come back." I was nodding, with tears running down my face. I probably look like an idiot.

"No. You have to promise me. You have to. Peeta, I don't think I could live without you." This is crazy. He can't live with me? I'm hardly anything special. Yet, it hurt me to see that look on such a gorgeous face.

"I promise, then. Gale, I promise I'll make it back to you." His expression morphs once again. Now I saw relief. Maybe even happiness. Before anything processes completely, Gale brought our lips back together once more.

I want to stay like that forever. Nothing would make me happier. Gale has to leave, though. We break apart, and there are tears in his eyes now, too.

Gale gets up to leave. As he passes through the doors, he turns back.

"You better keep your promise." Then he's gone. Just like that. My mind starts working through everything that just happened. I was kissing Gale. I promised him I would come back.

Now how am I supposed to do that?

The Peacekeepers escort me out of the Justice Building and into a car. Along the way, I began thinking of ways to make it out of there alive.

It seems hopeless. Especially once I get there, and Katniss is already being mobbed by reporters for her daring volunteer. Isn't Katniss Gale's best friend? I don't want to return without her. It may hurt Gale.

Great. Another person to keep alive. Once the reporters finally notice me, I stand there, not caring what they saw in my face. I can tell my face still has tear stains, but at this point, I don't care.

We both stand there, cameras blinding us and reporters happily buzzing around us. When they let us into the train, I let out a sigh. This is going to be a long ride.

The train is crazy fast. I've never experienced something quite like it, but it feels similar to kissing Gale. Kissing Gale is is better, though.

I hate myself for not telling Gale earlier that I liked him. Now, just when everything has just started, there's a big chance that I will never see him again. I still remember my promise, and I want to keep it so much. How am I supposed to do that? What if it ends up just being me and Katniss or something and then I have to kill her? Will he want me after killing his best friend?

I wouldn't want me. Hell, I wouldn't want me now.

Effie escorts us to our rooms, and they're amazing. Not that I can even truly appreciate having so much space to myself. The only thing I can focus on is Gale. He's the only thing I see as I wander around my chambers. The shower has running hot water, so I decide to take a quick shower before I'm supposed to meet for dinner.

I don't think as I put on my clothes, not even paying attention to how well the jeans fit and how soft the shirt is. If Gale keeps on taking over my mind like this, it could become an issue.

I slowly begin to make my way to the dining car. About halfway there, a drunk Haymitch runs straight into me. My day just keeps getting better.

"You need to learn to watch where you're going." He slurred. Something about this sets me off. I'm not the run that just ran into someone! Still, there is something that makes me not say anything harsh.

"Sorry." I mumble, surprising myself. It almost sounded sincere.

"Eh, Whatever. You'll be dead soon enough anyway." Haymitch breathes into my face. He smells dreadful. It's almost as if he doesn't do anything but drink, not even bathe.

"I'm not dying." I say through clenched teeth. "I'm going to get through this." As I say these words, I realize they're true. One way or another, I will make it back to Gale.

"What? You got someone to go back to?" He spits back at me. "Trust me, if you make it through this, they won't want you." Haymitch actually succeeds at looking me in the eye as the says these words. I almost believe him.

"Yeah. They probably won't." My voice softens. Gale wouldn't want me after this. I'd be just like Haymitch.

"Who?"

"G-Katniss." I didn't know what to do as the words leave my mouth. I didn't want to tell him I was gay, I have no idea how he'd react to that. So I go with the first girl I can think of, and she just happens to be on the train with me.

I don't like the look Haymitch gave me after I say this. Eyebrows raised, mouth turning up into a smirk. Then this look in his eyes as if some sort of plan has just formed.

"Well then. This is going to be interesting. Excuse me, I need to go take a nap." Oh great. He heard me. I thought he may have been too drunk. While walking away, he weaves down the hallway, running into the walls every now and again.

What is he thinking? He must have some sort of plan, and it most likely has to do with my most recent false love confession. But then, I doubt Haymitch will remember anything if he ever gets sober.

Rolling my eyes, I turn back and start back towards the dining car. My stomach rumbles. Hopefully, nothing else will happen on what was supposed to be a short walk.

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**Ack! That took me way too long. It's nearly five. In the morning.**

**However, I am still terribly sorry if I update slow...**

**Review and I'll describe my review happy dance!**


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